Notable English Players Who Opted to Switch Sides

Several English players choose to switch sides to be able to play in major international tournaments.

Playing for the national team is always a dream for every footballer, especially in major international tournaments like the EURO or FIFA World Cup. Unfortunately, the national team pool is limited, and only the best names will be selected for the final squad.

In the past few years, England has had plenty of promising talents. They might have been called up for the U17, U20, or U21 teams, but it gets harder to be named in the senior team squad due to the fiercer competition at the top level.

Recently, several well-known English players in the Premier League or from England youth teams have decided to switch sides for the sake of their chance to play in major international tournaments. Atalanta star in the Europa League final last month; Ademola Lookman was, in fact, an England star in the 2017 FIFA U20 World Cup. He was playing alongside Dominic Solanke and Dominic Calvert Lewin while England clinched the U20 World Cup. He opted to play for Nigeria instead of England in 2022, as he had not received any calls from the Three Lions. The former Everton, Fulham, and Leicester man seemed to realise that he had a long shot to play for England. Lookman was already involved in bringing Nigeria to the 2024 African Cup of Nations final before losing to the host, Ivory Coast.

Another example was Southampton man Che Adams. The 27-year-old striker chose to switch allegiance to Scotland in March 2021. He has been part of the Tartan Army squad since EURO 2020 and has earned 31 caps and scored six goals. Germany 2024 is already his second major international tournament.

Here are some other examples of English players who ditched playing for the Three Lions.

Michael Antonio

The current West Ham man has opted to switch sides for Jamaica since 2021. He was already included several times in the Three Lions squad under Sam Allardyce and Gareth Southgate, but only as an unused substitute. The last time Antonio received a call-up from England was in 2018, before the FIFA World Cup. Unfortunately, he had to lose his place due to an injury.

The 34-year-old versatile striker chose Jamaica despite having rejected their approach several times before. He realised that his opportunity to play for the Three Lions was running thin as he got older. So far, the former Sheffield Wednesday, Reading, and Nottingham Forest man has just scored three goals in 15 games for the Reggae Boys.

Antonio has been a mainstay in The Hammers since 2015. He has helped them reach the semifinals of the Europa League 2021 and the UEFA Conference League 2022, their first silverware in years, and certainly kept West Ham tickets in high demand.

Demarai Grey

Another Englishman who switched sides to Jamaica is Demarai Gray. The 27-year-old winger opted to play for the CONCACAF side instead in 2021 and made his international debut in 2023. Grey previously played for the England U18 and U21 teams until 2019. The former Everton and Bayer Leverkusen man has earned 11 caps and bagged five goals for his new nation, including two goals in the CONCACAF Gold Cup 2023.

The current Al Ettifaq man was once part of Claudio Ranieri’s squad at Leicester City when they won the Premier League in 2016. He stayed at King Power until 2021, after his loan spell at Bayer Leverkusen.

Matty Cash

England also lost another name in 2021. Matty Cash decided to switch allegiance to Poland in that year. Unlike Antonio and Grey, he had never been called up by the England national team, even in the youth team. So his decision is more justified. Cash has made 15 appearances for the Poland national team and scored one goal. He has been able to make the cut in the final squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup but was snubbed for EURO 2024.

The Berkshire-born wingback has been the mainstay at Aston Villa since he joined the team in the summer of 2020. He previously played for Nottingham Forest from 2016 to 2020, when they were still competing in the Championship. His position as a right-back makes it difficult for him to get a call, as there has been plenty of competition with Kieran Trippier, Kyle Walker, Trent Alexander Arnold, and most recently, Reece James.

Victor Moses

The 33-year-old versatile winger had even opted to leave the England national team to play for Nigeria in 2011. Moses was previously part of the England youth teams from U16 to U21. The former Crystal Palace and Chelsea man agreed to play for the Super Eagles after his previous rejection. He was even included in the final squad for the 2014 and 2018 FIFA World Cups. He scored an equaliser against Argentina in Russia 2018 before being conceded by Marcos Rojo’s winning goal, plus an assist in the previous match versus Iceland, which ended in a 2-0 victory. That was his last appearance for the African giant as well as in international football.

Moses then focused on his club career and moved abroad instead of staying in England. He joined Fenerbahce in 2018 and Inter Milan to reunite with his former boss, Antonio Conte, in 2019, before ending up in the Russian Premier League with Spartak Moscow. He is one of the players who remain in Russia despite the UEFA and FIFA suspensions due to the invasion of Ukraine.

Winfred Zaha

Last but not least, Winfred Zaha cannot be left off the list. He was once playing for the England youth team and even had been capped twice with the Three Lions in 2013. The former Crystal Palace man was snubbed for international fixtures by Roy Hodgson, Gareth Southgate’s predecessor until he opted to switch sides for Ivory Coast in 2016. Hodgson appeared to have regretted his decision. Before Zaha’s confirmed nationality status, Southgate had even attempted to persuade him to abort the process. Yet he went on to respond to Ivory Coast's call-up for the African Cup of Nations in 2017. He has made 33 appearances for his new nation and netted five times.

Zaha is currently playing for the Turkish giant Galatasaray and helped them clinch the league title in 2024 and the Turkish Super Cup in 2023. They are his first major pieces of silverware. He moved to Cim Bom in 2023 after seeing out his contract at Crystal Palace. His best contribution for the London side was helping them reach the FA Cup final in 2016 before suffering a 2-1 defeat against his former club, Manchester United.